As many parents are discovering, the early exposure in core subjects such as reading, writing, and mathematics are critical in the development of a child. Math particularly is a subject often ignored during these early years. In later years this can manifest as a fear of numbers, and subsequently a dislike of math. If however the discovery of numbers is encouraged in a fun, game-like way children will embrace the rudiments of math giving them a strong, life-long enjoyment for the subject.
From an early age children have the ability to recognize numbers. But what is harder to grasp for a child is what value these numbers represent. For example, a three-year-old may be able to recognize the number five, but cannot understand what it symbolizes.
The use of manipulatives (concrete learning), such as beads, and coins is very common in the early teaching of mathematics; however the transition between concrete and abstract learning where a child has to break from manipulatives and switch over to written numbers can often present difficulties.